“Aloha,

By now I’m sure you’ve all seen the devastation Hurricane Maria caused in Puerto Rico. Power knocked out. Telephone lines down. Cell phone towers destroyed. Literally all forms of communication totally wiped out. How prepared are amateur radio operators to deal with a situation like that should it happen here on the island of Hawaii?

On Saturday morning October 21st, all amateur radio operators in North Kohala, South Kohala, and Hamakua are invited, and strongly encouraged, to take part in a state-wide communications exercise designed to simulate the amateur radio response to a catastrophic tsunami. For complete details, download our action plan using the link below:

All you need to participate in this exercise is an FCC license and a handheld or mobile ham radio. You can operate from one of the suggested locations, your home, or your workplace. Since the most effective way to transmit tactical information is by voice, you don’t need to know how to use any special technology or forms. Once you know how to do it, passing tactical traffic is quick and easy. You simply follow generally accepted practices used in everyday amateur radio operations and comply with FCC regulations.

In the action plan, you’ll find suggestions to help you compose your own short messages. There are several examples of tactical messages as well as instructions on how to send them. Remember, you only need to reach your local base station in order to send reports to Hilo and beyond.

Taking part in this exercise gives you the opportunity to learn how to become a more effective communicator, to work with your fellow radio amateurs, and to brush up on or learn best practices. You’ll know how to contribute to a relief effort and what to expect when “the big one” really hits. Participating will also help you determine your own personal skill level and identify areas in which you can improve.

The simulated emergency test will unfold during a 5 hour period, but you don’t need to remain engaged for the entire time. Even if you can only participate for an hour or two, you’ll gain valuable experience in emergency communication operations.

So, please download the North Hawaii ARES District Action Plan for the SET 2017 Communications Exercise, use the sample messages in it as a guideline for creating several tactical messages relevant to your own community, and join us on-the-air Saturday morning October 21st.

For additional information, contact either Norm Cohler NH7UA (nh7ua@arrl.net) in the North and South Kohala districts or Rick Bowen AH6RK (rickbowen.pc@gmail.com) in the Hamakua district.

73 and aloha, Eric KH6CQ
District Emergency Coordinator
Hawaii Amateur Radio Emergency Service”

For the latest Amateur Radio news and information, please check the blog sidebars. These news feeds are updated daily and weekly.

Please send your Hawaii Island Amateur Radio news items to kh6jrm@arrl.net at least two weeks prior to your event.  This will give me time to contact our local print and broadcast media in a timely manner.

Opinions expressed in this blog are mine unless otherwise stated.

Thanks for joining us today.

Aloha es 73 de

Russell Roberts (KH6JRM)

Public Information Coordinator

Hawaii County, ARRL Pacific Section